Lentil Walnut Burgers

When I first saw this recipe in my Google reader a while back, I knew it was something I wanted to try. In fact, I planned on making these burgers immediately as I had the ingredients on hand, but somehow it didn't happen. Then I forgot about them. Recently I was perusing the blog where I'd first seen them, Cara's Cravings- which is full of a healthy, yet certainally never boring, recipes- while looking for new vegetarian dishes to try. Seeing this recipe again, I knew I couldn't let them get away from me a second time and made them the next day.

Originally a Moosewood Cookbook recipe, Cara had altered it a bit, changing hers from Lentil Walnut Burgers to ones made with pecans, and topped with sliced apples and blue cheese crumbles and seasoned with thyme. I choose to make mine with walnuts, just because I prefer them over pecans, and also to skip the apples but keep the blue cheese and the thyme. They were wonderful and we loved how they paired with the cheese.

Now here's the beauty of these tasty burgers: you don't just have to do the patty on a bun thing. The next day after I made them, I worked late, and when I got home, Sage repurposed them as a filling for delicious meatless quesadillas, along with sauteed mushrooms, tomatoes and white cheddar. Then the next day for lunch, I crumbled one over a salad with blue cheese and a drizzle of olive oil and vinegar dressing. I'm not a big fan of eating of same thing for days on end, but a busy schedule left cooking new things everyday hard, so I loved how they worked in several different ways. They can also be frozen. I will definitely be making these again soon.

Lentil-Walnut Burgers, adapted slightly from Cara's Cravings (originally from Mollie Katzen/Moosewood)

3/4 cup green lentils (or brown)

1 1/2 cups water

2 tablespoons cider vinegar

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 cup minced onion

4 large cloves garlic, minced

8 oz mushrooms, minced

1/2 cup finely chopped walnuts (or pecans)

sea salt and freshly ground pepper

2 tsp minced fresh thyme or rosemary (I used about a 1/2 tsp dried)

1/2 cup rolled oats

crumbled blue cheese, if desired

Place lentils and water in a small saucepan and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer, partially covered, for about 30 minutes, or until the lentils are soft and the liquid is gone.

Meanwhile, heat the oil in a medium-sized skillet. Add onion and saute over medium heat for about 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms and garlic and saute for about 5-10 minutes more, until the vegetables are soft. Add the thyme, the walnuts, and season with salt & pepper. Set aside to cool while the lentils finish cooking.

When the lentils are done, place in a bowl and mash with the vinegar. Add the sauteed vegetables and the oats and mix well. Chill for about an hour.

Preheat broiler. Form the lentil mixture into six equal sized patties ( I actually got 7 patties) and place on a baking sheet. Broil for about 8 minutes on each side. If desired, top the burgers with the blue cheese and broil for one minute more, or until cheese is melted.